Carlos Alcaraz dropped his first set at this year's US Open, but the Spaniard was not too fussed about it as he never looked in danger of losing the match.
Alcaraz faced the sternest test of his title defense thus far when he took on Washington champion Dan Evans in the third round. The British one-hander's varied game and court craft were expected to pose a major challenger to the energetic young Spaniard.
Alcaraz made a dominant start to the match, breaking Evans twice and bagging the first set 6-2. He extended his lead further, with three more breaks in the second set which he wrapped up in 49 minutes. Despite his measured aggression being on display, Evans' ability to neutralize power with an elegant one-hander unsettled the top seed.
Eventually, the man from Birmingham was rewarded in the third set when he became the first player in the championships to take a set off the Spaniard thanks to his patience and excellent point construction. It was expected to be a turning point in the match, with Alcaraz pictured receiving pills from his team potentially due to some physical discomfort.
But the defending champion regained his composure in the fourth set, needing just one break to seal the win. Speaking after the match, Alcaraz was not worried in the slightest that the match was getting away from him, adding that he was only focused on breaking Evans' serve after dropping the third set.
"Not really. Honestly, the first set was close. I didn't take my opportunities to break, to break again. In the fourth set we were playing a great match. You know, I was not thinking about I can lose or not. I just, I was focused on play my best in that game, try to break his serve as soon as I can. That was the only thing that I was thinking about. I was not worried about I can lose or not."
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